Positional breakdown: Wide receivers

Michael Lombardo

06/10/2007

Coach Norv Turner is excited by the weapons the Chargers have on offense, and that goes beyond LaDainian Tomlinson and Antonio Gates. Turner likes the team's receivers and expects them to capitalize on the extra attention given to his All-Pro duo. The Chargers have not had a wide receiver gain more than 1,000 yards since Curtis Conway did it back in 2001, when Turner was offensive coordinator.

The No. 1 receiver will be Vincent Jackson, who unofficially assumed that role midway through last season. His 2006 numbers included 27 catches for 453 yards and six touchdowns. He has the speed to make plays downfield and the size to be a factor in the red zone. All that is missing is the consistency.

"(Jackson) was told both directly and indirectly, ‘You need to be the guy,'" Philip Rivers said. "You could see it in the game plan, there were more and more things in there for him and it showed during the last five or six weeks of the season with the big catches and big plays he made."

Opposite of Jackson will be Eric Parker, whose suddenness and work ethic have quickly won over Coach Turner. After a disappointing performance in the playoff loss to the New England Patriots, Parker has come back with a vengeance this offseason.

"Eric is really important to us because he's different than the other receivers…He's sudden; he's quick; he runs excellent routes; and Philip has a great feel for throwing him the ball. (Eric) gives us that change-up guy in terms of style of routes," Turner said.

The No. 3 receiver will likely be Craig Davis. The Chargers' first-round pick in this year's draft, Davis has been slowed by a nagging groin injury for much of the offseason. However, he has still managed to make a positive impression on the coaching staff.

"He's a little behind in terms of learning the offense," said Turner of Davis. "It's easy when you're looking at a board or a tape. All of the sudden you are out there doing it and it speeds up. He's making the kind of progress that I'd hoped for."

No. 4 receiver Malcom Floyd gained a lot of confidence last season after catching 15 passes for 210 yards and three touchdowns before missing the final six games with an ankle injury.

"If I can stay healthy, I'm capable of making the Pro Bowl," Floyd said.

Kassim Osgood will maintain his place on the depth chart because of his contributions on special teams more than anything else.

"When (opponents) game-plan for you it's frustrating because you get no tackles. But when guys like Carlos Polk and Steve Gregory come in and make tackles, it makes me happy," Osgood said.

Finally, there is Legedu Naanee, this year's fifth-round pick who will split time at wide receiver and tight end.

"My impact will be primarily as a receiver, but I think they want me to play in a lot of different spots just to create some good match-ups," Naanee said.

The Chargers don't have any dominant, game-changing receivers in the mold of Anquan Boldin or Andre Johnson. But one through six, the Bolts have more than enough talent to get the job done.